


Adventures in Java

by Severina



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Community: lands_of_magic, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-09
Updated: 2015-07-09
Packaged: 2018-04-08 12:09:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,015
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4304451
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Severina/pseuds/Severina
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"What's that horrible stench?"</p>
<p>Rumple looked up at her and grinned over his mug. "This," he said, waving a hand at the dark liquid, "is coffee, my dear."</p>
            </blockquote>





	Adventures in Java

**Author's Note:**

> Storybrooke. Written for LJ's lands_of_magic's 'Badda Bing, Badda Boom' challenge, for the prompt "coffee".
> 
> * * *

Belle awoke, not surprised to find herself alone in Rumple's big bed. She had vague memories of hearing him rustling about in the dark of the room, of mumbling something that had caused him to lean down over her and kiss her before urging her to return to sleep. She had obliged willingly, even as the taste of his lips made something stir deliciously inside her; a vast and inconceivable longing that seemed never to be sated no matter how often they pleased each other in the night. 

Now she stretched, sat up and pushed her long hair out of her eyes. The sun was rising, slanting through the half-open curtains. In Avonlea she would have already been up and getting laced into a gown; at the Dark Castle she would be stirring the embers in the kitchen fire and preparing breakfast. In Storybrooke her day was an open book.

She pushed back the covers, and only then caught the scent on the air. She slipped from the room and followed the smell to the lower level, padding quietly into the kitchen. 

"What's that horrible stench?"

Rumple looked up at her and grinned over his mug. "This," he said, waving a hand at the dark liquid, "is coffee, my dear."

Belle wrinkled her nose and peered into his thick earthen cup. The smell was overwhelming, and she couldn't imagine how much worse it would get were she to bring the mug closer to her nose. Surely the taste was equally as vile. But then, she'd heard that there were those who considered the half-shelled slugs of Agrabah to be a delicacy worthy of the tables of kings and queens. And she knew without a doubt that she would never put one of those wriggling sea creatures past her lips.

She shuddered and drew back. "It smells like death."

Rumplestiltskin laughed. "It's quite good, actually. Would you like to taste?"

Belle watched him warily until he lifted the mug to his lips and took a hearty gulp. This was no jest. Rumple truly did ingest this 'coffee' and truly did appear to enjoy it. Perhaps the smell was an aberration. 

She took a tentative step forward and bit at her bottom lip. It may be, she thought, that adventures do not always come from slaying dragons and saving kingdoms. Perhaps they came also in smaller, more manageable increments. In maneuvering through a strange new land with the man you love. In the things she did with that man in his big bed when the lights were out, things that still made her blush despite her enthusiasm for the entire endeavour. In learning that there was no shame in revealing the shape of her calves – of even offering a glimpse of her thighs – in skirts that would cause shock and consternation back home. Maybe even in embracing new scents and tastes.

She finally nodded, held out her hand for the mug. 

"Some flavour it with cream or sweetener," Rumple said as he pressed the mug into her hands, "but I prefer it black."

Belle nodded again, eyed the thick dark liquid guardedly. It certainly looked harmless, and she had always known Rumplestiltskin to have impeccable taste. The smell of it still made her stomach clench, but she would be strong. She would savour this tiny adventure.

She raised the mug to her lips and took a single, delicate sip.

The bitterness nipped at her tongue and she gagged, forcing herself to swallow the revolting liquid before shoving the mug back toward Rumplestiltskin. He caught it before it could crash to the table but she hardly noticed, so busy was she in rushing to the sink to fling on the tap and dip her cupped hands into the cold water. Even after slurping down half a dozen handfuls of the cool, delicious water she could still taste the sour, acrid dredges of the coffee on her tongue.

She turned to see Rumplestiltskin barely covering his smirk behind the rim of the mug, and scowled at him as she reached for a cloth to dry her hands. 

"Not to your liking then, sweetheart?" he asked innocently.

"I think I'll stick with my tea, thank you," she replied with all the dignity that she could muster.

"There is a diner in town that offers, I am told, the most delectable hot chocolate in Storybrooke. You may find that more amenable to your tastes. Perhaps we can visit there after breakfast and you can try a cup." He rose from the table and slipped his arms around her waist, his thumbs rubbing gently at the silk that fell about her hips. She gasped as the sensation brought with it memories of the night just passed, of Rumple's hand slipping beneath the hem of her gown as his lips trailed upon her neck. Her mouth dropped open and she saw Rumple's gaze drop greedily to her lips before he raised his eyes to hers again. "Unless, of course, you have other plans in mind?"

She took a step closer, her hand going to his tie. "You're already dressed for work," she murmured.

"Ah, but you forget, my love," he said, his voice creeping up into a higher register and making her shiver with anticipation. She felt his hand twitch at her hip. "I am a powerful sorcerer."

Belle blinked as the material beneath her touch shifted with the vibration of his fingers to leave him standing before her clad in pajamas of the deepest charcoal. She sought out the uppermost button on his top, her fingers playing with the tiny piece of plastic. She bit her lip, a small part of her still thinking herself undeniably brazen, and gazed up at him from beneath her lashes. "I think I could be persuaded to sample hot chocolate on another day," she said.

He grinned just before he reached to tug her closer, and she closed her eyes when his magic enveloped them. Opened them to find them standing next to their bed, and to discover that her grin matched his own.

Adventure awaited.


End file.
